California is in the midst of its worst drought on record. Last January, Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr. declared a drought State of Emergency and preparations for water shortages began. Now, a majority of the state falls within the D3 (“extreme”) and D4 (“exceptional”) categories for drought intensity. Most state reservoirs are just 59 percent of their normal capacity, which has increased the demand on groundwater. According to the California Department of Water Resources, groundwater consumption has increased from 40 percent to 60 percent per year. As groundwater plays a more important role in meeting the public’s water needs, issues of groundwater contamination are pushing to the forefront of public attention. Read more...

After a week of recess, the Student Senate met as a whole to carry their usual duties as student representatives. First on the agenda was a conversation with Dean of Residence Life Todd Schill about changes to the universal access policy for RPI’s residence halls. Schill began by stating that he was one of the integral parts of getting this policy implemented in the school only two years ago. After examining policies at other colleges, Schill saw that a universal access policy allowed for more inclusive programming, friendships, and relationships with staff members. Schill reports that when he introduced the idea to the Residence Life staff three years ago, it was opposed by some and it wasn’t until a year after its trial period that it was accepted by a majority of the staff. After the incident of two burglaries at Bray Hall, universal access was revoked so as to increase security and prevent the “piggy-backing” that had led to these thefts. Since last Friday, students with meal plans have had access to dining facilitiesaccess has been on for all students with a meal plan and Schill is thoroughly examining the list of those who remain with universal access and has limited it to only those who need it. After Schill stressed that Residence Life has made these changes with the ultimate goal of safe residence halls, he opened up to take questions from those assembled. Senator Justin Etzine ’18 suggested that all of the residence halls in the quadrangle gain access to each other as this hinders events for this residence hall. Senator Mason Cooper ’17 asked if Sharp Hall, Nugent Halls, and Warren Hall may gain access to each other due to the laundry facility within Sharp. Schill also acknowledged problems with Ground Zero events as this event is highly attended by the public and allows for greater security compromise than most other residence hall events. Schill ended his portion of the meeting by stating that feedback from the student body is always welcome and that ResLife is constantly working to improve safety and optimize access. Dean Schill may be reached at shilt3@rpi.edu. Read more...

In 1970, the Rensselaer Union Constitution was restructured. Today, student government officials believe that it should be restructured again. The Constitution committee led by Nathan James ’15 will be going through and revising the Union Constitution this semester and next in preparation for it to be voted on in Grand Marshal Week 2015. This committee is open to all students; its first meeting will be Thursday, October 23 at 7 pm in Mother’s Wine Emporium. Read more...

On Tuesday, October 21, the Graduate Council met to discuss upcoming events and relevant issues to the graduate student body. Graduate Council President Kristen Lee presided over the meeting. Read more...

On October 8, between 6:20 and 6:45 pm, it is believed that two suspects entered Bray Hall by “piggybacking” on a student as they used their own card to enter the building. Read more...